MMAE 593 Seminar Series: Erfan Ahmadi

The School of Engineering, Applied Science, and Health presents its MMAE 593 seminar series featuring guest speaker Erfan Ahmadi, head of supplier quality engineering at Aurora Innovations, who will present “From Blueprint to the Highway: Bridging Engineering Theory and Real-World Execution in Autonomous Vehicles.” This event is open to the public and will take place on Thursday, September 3, from 12:45–1:45 p.m. in Room 109 of Perlstein Hall.

Abstract

Building fully autonomous vehicles, from passenger robo-taxis to self-driving 18-wheelers, requires far more than algorithms and advanced software. Bringing these complex systems to life requires bridging cutting-edge engineering theory with the rigorous realities of physical manufacturing, supplier quality, and commercial scaling. In this seminar, Illinois Tech alumnus Erfan Ahmadi will share insights from over a decade on the front lines of autonomous transportation and aerospace at companies including Tesla, Zoox, Zipline, and Aurora. He will explore how core engineering principles (APQP, system validation, root cause analysis) are applied to critical electro-mechanical components such as LiDAR, Radar, compute units, and chassis systems—to turn ambitious theoretical models into safe, scalable, and reliable commercial fleets. Students will gain a practical perspective on what it takes to build a career at the intersection of robotics, hardware engineering, and autonomous systems execution.

Biography

Erfan Ahmadi (ME ’15) is a quality and operations leader with more than 12 years of experience driving hardware excellence and operational scaling across autonomous vehicles (AV), automotive, and aerospace. Throughout his career at industry pioneers including Tesla, Zoox, Zipline, and Aurora Innovations, Ahmad has specialized in bringing advanced autonomous technologies from early prototype validation to mass-production readiness. His work spans complex electro-mechanical systems, including LiDAR, radar, compute platforms, and autonomous heavy-duty truck platforms, with a focus on supplier quality management, supply chain, engineering, systems safety, and field reliability.